Architects Pay Tribute to 11 Projects : 14th Annual Awards Program Has Its Problems--but Nothing Like the Diatribes of Last Year

Plagued by a malfunctioning sound system and the absence of two judges, the American Institute of Architects/Orange County Chapter's 14th annual awards program Friday night at the Noguchi sculpture garden in Costa Mesa was a disjointed and tepid affair.

But the tone was vastly different from last year's meeting, at which members were surprised by the judges' diatribes against certain trends in Orange County architecture and by awards to parking garages.

This year, Steward Woodard, one of the five Honor Award winners, drew laughter from the 500 guests when he quipped that he "tried very hard to find a way to make my house look like a parking garage."

No criticisms were offered by the 1989 judging panel, which bestowed awards on 11 projects. Winners were chosen from 69 submissions by 39 Orange County architectural firms.

For the Record Los Angeles Times Thursday July 20, 1989 Orange County Edition Calendar Part 6 Page 10 Column 1 Entertainment Desk 2 inches; 57 words Type of Material: Correction Because of incomplete information provided to The Times, a story in Tuesday's Calendar about architecture award winners did not include the name of Peter Miles Landscape Architect in El Toro, which worked on the University Montessori School of Irvine. The project was one of five presented Honor Awards on Friday at the American Institute of Architects/Orange County Chapter's 14th annual awards program.

The judges--all practicing architects-- were Judith Chafee of Tucson; Franklin David Israel of Beverly Hills; E. Fay Jones of Fayetteville, Ark., and Paul R. Neel of San Luis Obispo. Israel and Neel were unable to attend the ceremony.

Votes were solicited during a two-week period from shoppers at South Coast Plaza's Jewel Court for the "People's Choice" award, which went to Architects Orange for the Selman residence in Tustin Hills.